At around 8 a.m. Eastern, Britain's FTSE 100 added 0.3 percent to 6,831, and France's CAC 40 gained 0.6 percent to 4,442. Germany's DAX rose 0.8 percent to 10,520. Futures showed that U.S. stocks were set for some gains, with Dow and S&P futures up 0.1 percent.

China's consumer price index rose 1.8 percent last month over a year earlier, slower than June's 1.9 percent. The July figure is the third monthly drop in a row since April, when the consumer price index reached its highest level since July 2014. It also was below the government's 3 percent inflation target.

The news came a day after China reported exports fell in July, which increased investors' expectations of more stimulus measures from Beijing to soften the economy's slowdown.

Oil was also in focus after the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries announced that oil ministers of the 14-nation organization will meet next month, well ahead of their previously scheduled November meeting. It's unusual for OPEC to gather outside of its regularly set meetings, and Monday's report pushed up the price of crude oil overnight.

Benchmark U.S. crude rose 6 cents to $43.08 per barrel in New York, adding to the $1.22 gains made on Monday. Brent crude, used to price international oil, rose 11 cents to $45.50 per barrel in London.

"News that OPEC would be having a September meeting with certain members keen to push for supply cuts again served as the impetus for oil prices to rally. While a deal is highly unlikely to eventuate, the fact that it is even being mentioned shows how much difficulty the past month's renewed sell-off was causing many struggling OPEC members," Angus Nicholson, a market analyst at IG in Melbourne, Australia, said in a daily commentary.